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... U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit issued the first appellate decision in litigation challenging the constitutionality of Affordable Care Act (ACA). The court upheld the law, reasoning that Congress had acted within its constitutional authority when it required individuals to purchase health insurance (the so-called "individual mandate").   One of the leading conservatives on the circuit – George W. Bush appointee Jeffrey ... opinion showed an understanding of how the industry operates in practice, and that the individual mandate regulates "active participation in the health care market."   The opinion also discussed the uniqueness of health care, and the necessity of access to it. Judge Sutton’s concurring ...

... body, released its report on principles for an essential benefits package.  One of ACS CAN's most important goals is to achieve adequate health coverage for all cancer patients.  The Affordable Care Act gives the Secretary of Health and Human Services very broad - but vague - authority to develop an essential health benefits package.  The IOM report is a thorough first ...

... a letter to the president urging him to issue a strong, final regulation on the Summary of Benefits and Coverage (SBC). Under the Affordable Care Act, insurers (and self-insured plans) are required to provide consumers with a standardized form that explains the basics of insurance and ... developed a prototype and tested it with consumers, with the assistance of Consumers Union and the insurance industry's trade group, America's Health Insurance Plans. The three scenarios tested include maternity, diabetes, and treatment for Stage II breast cancer. (The breast cancer case ... just one example. ACS CAN and other consumer groups strongly believe that the SBC is vital to enhancing consumer knowledge and understanding of health insurance. For the first time, consumers will have a document that could be enormously helpful to them in better understanding their options ...

... by $3.7 billion over the next 10 years.   The plan would also impact funding for discretionary programs, such as the National Institutes of Health and Centers for Disease Control, along with Medicare.   However, the reductions in spending under this plan are not nearly as significant ... that will resolve the budget stalemate while leaving important programs, such as Medicare, intact. HHS Releases Proposed Regulation for CO-OP Health Insurance Plans Last week, the Department of Health and Human Services proposed standards for establishing CO-OP health insurance plans. To ...   Profits realized by a CO-OP must be reinvested in the plans through lower premiums, better benefits, or other improvements in health care quality.   A CO-OP will also have the option to sell coverage to small businesses. Institute of Medicine Releases Recommendations on Coverage ...